The end of April is in sight, and this can only mean one thing: the National Candidate Reply Date is approaching.

On May 1, accepted students must notify one college of their intent to enroll by submitting a deposit. As such, high school seniors are jet-setting around the country to attend “yield events” at the colleges to which they were admitted. After months, nay years, of efforts to impress colleges, the tables have turned and students have the opportunity to be courted by my colleagues in admissions.

For many students, the college choice represents the first time that they have had to make a weighty decision. Each individual reacts to this reality in his or her own way. For some, the perceived grandeur of this selection is almost paralyzing. Others set about methodically, determining the pros and cons of each institution as though a single rubric and maybe a bit of calculus will facilitate the task.

No matter what process you select to aid your discernment, the following might be helpful to consider:

Look Beyond the Numbers

When it comes to college admissions, rankings abound and data on attrition, graduation rates, graduate school acceptance and student satisfaction are available in a single click.

Stare at the numbers long enough and it will become apparent that every school is in the top ten by some equation. In fact, one could choose a college based on the documented food quality alone.

Fresh sushi in the dining hall, however, only goes so far.
While statistics on job placement, campus safety, research opportunities and other factors may contribute to your decision, the most important thing to know is yourself.

An understanding of your needs, values and priorities are paramount. A firm sense of the community, campus culture and opportunities at each college will allow you to best fit yourself to an environment in which you will thrive. In other words, what looks good on paper or online, might not always equate to a wise choice.

After the Facts, Go With Your Gut

The balance between critical analysis and gut instinct is a tricky one. Thoughtful decision-making involves an assessment of the facts and outcomes, while allowing for knowledge of self to guide your final choice.

Yes, it may be necessary to consider cost of attendance and distance from home. After these, considerations, however, quiet your mind from overanalyzing and fixating on the external. This will allow you to truly listen to what you know to be the right decision.

Seniors, this advice should not be used as justification to your parents as to why you are following your boyfriend or girlfriend to college. Rather it is an opportunity to be a demonstration of the maturity and insight that you possess as you enter into adulthood.

Do Not Jump to Conclusions

It is easy to let one interaction or one rainy day sour your impression of a college.

As you weigh the pros and cons of each institution, keep in mind that it rains everywhere and that one individual does not represent the entire school.

Also, be aware that your best friend may have a very different reaction to the same college. Just because it is not right for him or her does not mean you should cross it off your final list.

Send the Check, Buy the Sweatshirt and Celebrate the Future

Somehow, most students and families will arrive at a decision by May 1 (though colleges will often grant extensions if there is a compelling reason).

Once the deposit check is in the mail, own the decision. Be confident in your college choice and accept that the path that has been chosen is just that, a path.

Each college experience is special, and the journey is not always linear. Not everyone graduates in four years from the college in which they enrolled. Some students transfer, take gap years or have their education disrupted for any number of reasons.

Even if it was not your first choice when you applied, invest yourself in your college as though you mean it. Try to remain open and trust that the universe will take care of the rest.

Do you have any additional tips for seniors who are deciding where to enroll? Please share your thoughts and experience in the comments box below.

Affordability is an important factor. After that, the time you’ve spent visiting a campus is the key. Can you see yourself at that college? Do you think you would fit in with the students you saw walking around campus and hanging out in the dining hall? Did you hear about any clubs, events or other non-academic activities that interested you? The right college should prompt you to answer, “Yes” to these questions.

This post conveys important advice about students really knowing themselves and their priorities, and selecting the college that best fits who they are and what they want.

But the comments on food [“In fact, one could choose a college based on the documented food quality alone.”] could be interpreted as suggesting consideration of food quality is immature and/or frivolous. In my family, good food at a residential college is an important consideration on the theory that good food leads to better health leads to happier, more productive student. Plus the culture around eating at a college says things about the strength of the community and fit for the student. I wouldn’t need sushi, actually, or a place to show up on Princeton Review’s Top 20 for food, but a visit to dining hall and sample of student opinions on food quality is (and has been, for my family) meaningful. NOT the only or MOST important consideration by a long shot, but important and meaningful.

Undergraduates might benefit from seeing the four years of college or University as providing them with an ideal social opportunity and academic platform from which they are launched into adulthood, accompanied by a selectively chosen, supportive network of professors, peers, and some part-time employers. There they are to accomplish three primary age-appropriate tasks required of this stage of development; autonomy, independence, and individuation.

The degree of success they have in these three areas will help determine their transition from amassing course work designed for a skill-set emphasis to a perspective of life long learning, critical thinking, and of finding their unique place a contributor to an individual-global perspective.

The stimulating, refined process of learning has its own beauty and its purpose in our existence is to be revered for its own sake, not independent of doing, but integral to Being.

I love this list, and yes, I agree that getting a feel for the campus from what the website or college guides tell you isn’t enough. See the dorms, see the student union, talk to the students on campus…ask about extracurriculars that suit your interests. You and your parents are investing for the next 4 years; might as well know what you are getting into!

After sending in the check yesterday and then stumbling upon this article today, I feel less certain than ever. I feel neither willing nor qualified to “own” this decision, even if it was a financially sound one. I also have no desire to buy a sweatshirt.

When I have advised students and parents on this final piece of the process, I have often said it is most important to make sure you are asking the right question. Do not ask, “What is the best college?” Ask, instead, “What is the best college for me?” In that sense, this advice is absolutely correct. The most important part is – know yourself and be true to that. Good luck, all!

Tyler, I feel the same way. I paid the deposit for my daughter’s second choice because her first choice was out of reach financially. I thought that would put an end to my trying to find a way to pay for one school that costs three times as much as the other, but it hasn’t. I have resigned myself to what is clearly the most reasonable choice for me and for her, but I have no emotional buy-in.